Langrial appointed FBR chief

ISLAMABAD: The government has appointed Rashid Mahmood Langrial, belonging to the Pakistan Administrative Service (PAS), as the new chairman of Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) following the early retirement request of former chairman Amjad Zubair Tiwana.

The government has also notified the repatriation of Amjad Zubair Tiwana to his parent department, the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR), with an immediate effect, indicating that his request for early retirement has not yet been entertained.

The appointment comes at a critical time when the tax machinery must meet a tax collection target of Rs12,913 billion under the IMF agreement. The first and foremost challenge for the newly appointed FBR chairman will be digitising the board, so the narrow tax base could be expanded and potential tax dodgers apprehended through improved enforcement. The FBR faces the monumental task of identifying new taxpayers instead of further burdening the existing ones. Additionally, the new chairman must achieve monthly, quarterly, and annual revenue collection targets agreed upon with the IMF.

Official sources said the government had obtained approval from cabinet ministers through the circulation of summary for the appointment of new chairman and repatriation of the former chairman to his parent department. According to an official notification issued on Wednesday, Rashid Mahmood, a BS-21 officer of PAS currently serving as Secretary of the Power Division, is transferred and posted as Chairman of the Federal Board of Revenue under Section 10 of the Civil Servant Act, 1973, with immediate effect and until further orders.

In another official notification issued by the Establishment Division, it was stated that with the approval of the federal cabinet, Malik Amjad Zubair Tiwana, a BS-21 officer of the Inland Revenue Service currently posted as Chairman FBR under Section 10 of the Civil Servant Act, 1973, is hereby repatriated to his parent department, FBR, with immediate effect. When contacted, former chairman Amjad Zubair Tiwana said that it was a routine order until his retirement, adding that one has to be posted somewhere to draw a salary.

The outgoing chairman, Amjad Zubair Tiwana, exceeded the first month (July 2024) target by Rs4 billion, with the FBR collecting Rs660 billion against the assigned target of Rs656 billion, despite releasing refunds of Rs70 billion. The FBR had fetched Rs9,311 billion in revenues for the last fiscal year ending on June 30, 2024, against the revised target of Rs9,252 billion.

Rashid Mahmood, a BS-21 officer of the Pakistan Administrative Service, holds a Master of Public Administration in International Development from the Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University. He was most recently serving as Federal Secretary of the Power Division. Previously, he served as Chief Secretary in Gilgit-Baltistan and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. He has also held the position of Additional Secretary at the Ministry of National Food Security and Research.

Additionally, Rashid Mahmood was the Chief Executive Officer of the National Power Parks Management Company (Pvt) Limited (NPPMCL) and has held various positions in Punjab throughout his career. Rashid Mahmood was currently serving as federal secretary of the Power Division. He had also served in Punjab in different positions.